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Betting Shops in England Eligible for Grants of up to £6000 a Site in £5B Recovery Plan

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The UK Betting & Gaming Council (BGC) has welcomed the announcement ahead of Wednesday’s Budget that non-essential retail businesses such as betting shops will be eligible for direct cash grants of up to £6000 per site, although the bookmaker trade body has reiterated its call for an extension of business rates relief for a further year.

Details of the grant scheme came as part of a series of announcements ahead of Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s annual budget speech, in which he is set to reveal a new grant scheme totalling £5 billion to aid the recovery of high-street businesses in England.

Nearly 700,000 shops, restaurants, hotels, hair salons, gyms and other businesses in England will be eligible for “restart grants,” to be distributed directly to firms by local authorities from April. It will replace the current monthly grant system.

Under the budget plans, non-essential retail will be eligible for direct cash grants of up to £6000 to help them start trading again when allowed to do so, while hospitality, accommodation, leisure, personal care and gym businesses in England – which will remain closed for longer under the government’s roadmap out of lockdown – will be able to apply for grants of £18,000 per site.

“The BGC would warmly welcome any additional support for betting shops, be that business rates or grants, particularly giving the pressure independent betting shops are under,” a spokesman for the BGC said.

Racecourses and bookmakers in England were given a clear set of dates to work towards for reopening last week when prime minister Boris Johnson gave the first details of a timetable for leaving lockdown.

Non-essential retail, which has for most of the pandemic included betting shops, will form part of phase two of the plan, with April 12 the provisional date for reopening if vaccination rates rise and hospitalisations drop sufficiently.

BGC chief executive Michael Dugher has written to Sunak ahead of the budget setting out a five-point plan for more business support to “unlock the power of the high street and drive economic growth.”

Dugher said in his letter: “With premises shut for much of the past year, this would help protect jobs and remove a major financial pressure on businesses that have suffered a significant loss of income during the pandemic.”

Dugher pointed to the fact that licensed betting offices had been severely impacted by the various regional and national lockdowns over the past ten months, with revenues for this sector falling by 45% in 2020.

The letter also seeks assurance that funding for devolved administrations is made available to all business sectors in need. While businesses in England and Northern Ireland have benefited from business rates relief since last April, the Scottish and Welsh governments took the decision not to provide support for gambling companies.

“The UK Government’s backing for business stands in stark contrast to the refusal of the devolved administrations in Wales and Scotland to offer business rates relief to our members,” states the letter.

“This has sadly had a disproportionate impact on our smaller independent businesses, many of them family run, which have faced making staff redundant and an uncertain future.”

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BetHog Chooses Optimove as its Marketing Solution through Ignite+ Program to Jumpstart its Marketing

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Cryptocurrency casino and sportsbook startup harnesses Optimove’s Ignite+ Program to scale campaigns, gain predictive insights, and deliver personalized player journeys at scale

BetHog, a cryptocurrency casino and sportsbook from the creators of FanDuel, has chosen Optimove as its marketing solution through its Ignite+ program. Ignite+ gives BetHog access to enterprise-grade CRM and AI-driven marketing capabilities, enabling the company to accelerate campaign execution, gain predictive insights, and deliver more personalized player experiences at scale. Optimove is the creator of Positionless Marketing and the #1 Marketing Solution for iGaming and sports betting operators.

“Optimove has been an incredible platform and partner in speed-to-market from day one,” said Kyle Wachtel, Chief Marketing Officer at BetHog. “Their team didn’t just provide us with a platform. They became an extension of our marketing team, bringing expertise, predictive models, and industry knowledge that we simply couldn’t replicate in-house at this stage.”

Tomer Imber, Senior Director of Sales, US Gaming at Optimove, commented: “From the start, the BetHog team has shown incredible vision and drive, already boasting an innovative product and burgeoning brand, and we are excited to be part of their journey. BetHog is leveraging our platform to build lasting player relationships and accelerate growth.”

The partnership highlights BetHog’s rapid path from integration to execution. Within weeks, the company completed its IP warmup, validated data quality, and began sending campaigns. Optimove’s out-of-the-box predictive models and churn analytics now serve as a BI function for the startup, enabling it to focus on growth without the burden of building a large internal team.

“The Ignite+ Program was the perfect fit for us as a fast-growing startup,” Wachtel added. “It gave us access to enterprise-grade CRM capabilities and AI-driven insights without the overhead of building out a full BI and CRM function. From onboarding to campaign launch, Optimove executed at startup speed to get us live.”
With Optimove in place, BetHog is now poised to embrace Positionless Marketing, a breakthrough approach that frees marketers from traditional role constraints and gives them the ability to independently harness Data Power, Creative Power, and Optimization Power.

“We still have many opportunities to explore with Optimove, and we are confident that Positionless Marketing will help us move faster, personalize more deeply, and maximize every player interaction,” Wachtel said.

The Ignite+ Program has already supported the growth of dozens of iGaming and sportsbook operators. For BetHog, leveraging Ignite+ represents a key milestone in its journey to scale rapidly while building a foundation for personalized, AI-powered marketing.

 

The post BetHog Chooses Optimove as its Marketing Solution through Ignite+ Program to Jumpstart its Marketing appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry in the Americas.

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VSiN Launches Fall Programming Lineup, Giving Fans More of Their Favorite Sports Betting Shows and Hosts

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Sports Betting Network Adds Hour of Sharp Bettor Favorite “A Numbers Game,” Announces Hosts Mitch Moss & Pauly Howard Join Sunday Programming, Sees Return of Fantasy Sports “Guru” John Hansen

VSiN, The Sports Betting Network, announces its new programming lineup, delivering more of the network’s most popular sports betting shows and hosts. As the 2025 NFL season ramps up, VSiN’s new fall schedule launches to the largest audience in its history.

“With more viewers and listeners than we’ve ever had going into football season, we’re thrilled to launch VSiN’s new programming lineup as an answer to fans asking for more of the quality programming they want and need to inform their wagering and fantasy decisions,” said Steve Cohen, EVP of Talent and Programming at VSiN. “As our competitors across all media continue to pull back and even disappear, it’s that continued commitment to content that sets VSiN apart and fuels our continued growth.”

VSiN’s full live programming lineup launches today and can be viewed at VSiN.com. Highlights include:

  • VSiN adds one additional hour to “A Numbers Game” with Gill Alexander and producer Kelley Bydlon. The longest running show on VSiN now airs weekdays from 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. ET. Each day, Alexander and his roster of expert guests take fans deep into the numbers of gambling, leveraging advanced metrics in his handicapping.
  • Hosts of VSiN’s popular weekday afternoon show “Follow the Money,” Mitch Moss and Pauly Howard, will add a sixth shift each week to anchor the live NFL pregame discussion on “VSiN’s Pro Football Tailgate Show” Sundays from 9 a.m. – noon ET. Analytics expert Warren Sharp and props analyst John Hansen will be among the regular guests. Having moved the show’s weekday timeslot from mornings to afternoons last fall, Moss and Howard return to mornings one day each week for the Sunday football action.
  • “The Guru” John Hansen returns as the host of “Prop Points,” bringing decades of fantasy expertise to weekdays from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. ET. Hansen has been an industry leader since 1995. He was the first individual to contribute to ESPN’s coverage of fantasy football online and on ESPN Radio and TV in 1996, before roles at Yahoo! Sports, “NFL Fantasy Live” on NFL.com, and as chief fantasy analyst for a ground-breaking “Fantasy Zone” channel on DirectTV.
  • The popular Circa Friday Football Invitational show, hosted by Matt Youmans, returns for a third season. Twenty-five pro bettors and handicappers compete in a weekly pro and college football pick’em contest for $30,000 in prizes. The show will be expanded by an hour, from 7 p.m. – 10 p.m. ET.
  • VSiN’s own Dustin Swedelson takes the anchor desk permanently on “Cashing Out,” the network’s last live show and the final word on the day’s betting action. Each weeknight from 11 p.m. – 2 a.m. ET, Swedelson savors the wins, analyzes the losses and sets the board for tomorrow’s betting menu.
  • “VSiN by the Books” has moved its home base to VSiN’s new studio in Circa Sports sportsbook located at The Mint Gaming Hall Kentucky Downs in Franklin. The morning show and some Saturday programming will broadcast live from the recently launched retail sportsbook, which is the largest in the state of Kentucky.
  • Beginning on Saturday, Aug. 30, VSiN’s weekend programming will start an hour earlier at 9 a.m. ET to deliver all the news, analysis and insights sports fans and betting enthusiasts need on gameday.

Broadcasting 24/7 from the entertainment capital of the world in Las Vegas, VSiN empowers sports fans and bettors with the news, analysis, and insights they need to make informed wagering decisions, including 18+ hours of daily live linear sports content. Featuring some of the industry’s most knowledgeable sports betting and fantasy experts, as well as legendary book makers, VSiN’s goal is to inform and entertain the growing number of Americans betting on sports – whether they are sharp bettors or brand new to sports betting. VSiN’s exclusive content sets the stage for the day’s biggest sports betting events and includes expert tips and predictions on college and pro football, college and pro basketball, baseball, hockey, golf, tennis, NASCAR, and more.

Fans can access VSiN content on YouTube TV, SiriusXM (158), Rogers’ Sportsnet, NESN, Marquee Sports Network, MASN, Spectrum SportsNet LA, SportsNet Pittsburgh, iHeartRadio, TuneIn, more than 350 terrestrial radio stations throughout the U.S., VSiN.com, and the VSiN Watch app.

VSiN’s newsroom studio is located in the sportsbook at the Circa Resort and Casino in Las Vegas.

 

The post VSiN Launches Fall Programming Lineup, Giving Fans More of Their Favorite Sports Betting Shows and Hosts appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry in the Americas.

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Fast Track AI to change the face of iGaming CRM

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Fast Track will unveil its new AI-driven natural language platform on 2 September during its annual Fast Track House event in Malta. The launch will also be streamed live online from 4 PM CEST, giving the iGaming industry an exclusive first look at the future of player engagement.

For the past decade, Fast Track has pioneered real-time data integration, the Singularity Model, the only Gameplay Risk Engine, and Rewards, the first AI-ready gamification system. Each innovation has moved the company closer to its vision: to digitalise the iGaming industry and deliver the first self-learning engagement platform.

Fast Track AI is trained on over 10 years of iGaming expertise and designed to transform how CRM teams work. It can perform technical analysis on terabytes of real-time data, deliver advanced insights into CRM performance and player behaviour, and uniquely take direct action on those insights across the platform.

“This isn’t just AI added to CRM. This is CRM re-engineered for the natural language era,” said Simon Lidzén, CEO and Co-Founder of Fast Track.

“Even your wildest imagination can only take you so far; minds have been bound by constraints for so long that it is hard to picture the full power of Fast Track AI. You simply need to see it to believe it. This is why I am organising a live session to unveil it; to showcase what a native iGaming CRM, built on the most comprehensive real-time data infrastructure together with the Singularity Model, is capable of. I urge the whole industry to sign up.” Lidzén added.

The big reveal will take place during the Fast Track House event in Malta and will be streamed live online. The broadcast begins at 4:00 PM CEST on 2 September. 

Registration is now open: https://app.livestorm.co/fast-track/fast-track-ai-in-action

 

The post Fast Track AI to change the face of iGaming CRM appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry in the Americas.

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